Runt of the Litter
by FlangstPrince
Summary: Oneshot! Vlad Masters has standards, and this runt just doesn't fill the bill, however he can't help but be intrigued by those blue and green eyes.


First Danny Phantom fanfic! Enjoy!

* * *

Vlad Masters coughed into his sleeve as he raised his umbrella over his head. The rain was beating down harder on Amity Park as the blackened skies grumbled lowly. The white haired man clutched tightly onto the cane of the only thing shielding him from the rain as the wind attempted to rip it out of his grip. The lightning that shot across the sky didn't phase him as he focused on getting back home to his hotel, where his penthouse, Masters' Suite was waiting for him.

Vlad swallowed, nothing could ever turn out the way he planned, could it? He had originally planned to transform and fly to his suite after his mayoral duties had been handled for the day, so he hadn't bothered to call his chauffeur. However, the weather forecast had been wrong, deciding to bring rain, thunder, and lightning. Vlad sighed, he was not going to fly out during a thunderstorm again after what happened last time. Just by the thought of being shocked by the flash of light, followed by the boom of the storm made him shudder a bit. The lighting was attracted to his heat core in the sky, at least Vlad now knew how Daniel felt when he had first gotten his powers.

Masters sneered at the next thought that creeped into his head. His driver was not available at this time either. He was off the clock because he had the rest of the day off. Vlad glanced at the busy street of Amity Park beside him, it would have taken the driver longer to get to Vlad's location than it would for the mayor to walk home with all the traffic. There were sirens blaring, and cars honking as the police attempted to guide people past an accident caused by a car that lost control in the thunderstorm.

The noise of it all truly did bother the man. The city was nothing new to him, but he wasn't usually so… exposed. He was mostly either in a car being driven around, or rather than that in a building. However, if he wasn't in a city he was in the country. Wisconsin was his home, it was nice up there, lots of open space and a lot less people screaming unintelligible things to the strangers around them while being trapped in their cars.

Vlad didn't dislike the city.

He hated it.

Everything about the place gave him a headache. He just wanted to get home without being struck by lightning, so he could take a warm bath. In complete peace and silence. That would be perfect.

Vlad was shaken from his thoughts as another resounding boom echoed throughout the downtown area. Vlad winced, stopping in his tracks as he suddenly found mud, and rain water being splashed all over himself. In his shock, he loosened his grip, allowing the umbrella to fly away with the intense wind.

Vlad sucked in an intensely irritated breath, pulling his large brown coat overtop of him. He couldn't take this street anymore. The man ran into a side street, hoping that it would lead him to a less busy street.

Sadly however, the alleyway only led to a dead end. It uneased Vlad a bit, another thing he hated about the city. He turned, ready to leave when he heard a loud yowl, followed by a hiss.

Vlad turned to see a large, black stray cat hissing and swiping it's sharp claws at a smaller, black and white figure.

The cat growled, before turning to walk into a sewer entrance. The smaller cat made a meek attempt to follow, but the bigger cat turned once more and hissed as she sliced at the smaller kitten's face. It squealed in pain as the mother took off, abandoning it's kitten.

Vlad took a step closer to get a better look. The kitten looked to be about four weeks old, being that it could walk and use its senses. The thing that made Vlad second guess himself however, was how small the kitten was. He supposed it was the runt of the litter, probably the reason the mother was booting it from the litter.

Vlad returned from his thoughts as he heard a sorrowful mewl. The kitten weeping in the rain as thunder boomed louder in the alleyway. Vlad could see three large gashes in the kitten's face from where the mother had left her mark. The kitten was drenched, filthy, and now bleeding. It looked so small, weak and… pathetic. It glanced up at the tall man in fear, meowing weakly.

Vlad sucked in another breath... and he thought he looked like a wet cat. The man hesitantly took off his jacket. He winced at the cold air as the wind blew against his face, his ponytail going undone. He quickly snatched the kitten in his coat, the kitten making a small noise of protest as it was snatched into the darkness… the warm darkness, but it was still darkness. Muffled wails came from the coat as Vlad hugged it closely to his chest, he had to get to his hotel as fast as possible. Before someone saw him in this condition. Not to mention before he froze to death in this cold storm.

* * *

Vlad let out a heavy sigh, he had finally gotten back to his hotel. However, the relaxing bath he had imagined was short lived, being he had something else to deal with. He was now in more comfortable clothing, cleaned of dirt and grime. Now, he had another thing to clean up though.

His brown coat was draped over a chair, the kitten shaking in it's embrace. Vlad proceeded with caution, picking up the coat rather than the small mammal inside. It made a small noise as it was picked up, Vlad slowly carried it to the bathroom.

He began to fill up the tub as he watched the small kitten, it's matted fur standing on end as if ready to defend itself. Once the tub was full, he grabbed a nearby towel. He had learned this lesson the hard way with his own cats. Always use a towel to handle felines while bathing them.

Vlad lowered the kitten in the tub, it yelped at the warm water, touching it's cold body. Vlad winced at the noise. "Okay there, calm down." he held the cat still, scrubbing it's coat, revealing its white patterns. The small animal squirmed and attempted to claw it's way out of the tub, to no avail.

Eventually, he had managed to wash and rinse the cat, after some minor scratches and splashes of course. As he wrapped the small kitten in the towel once more, he began to dry it off. He rubbed the towel against the cat's dark and light fur. Once he released the runt from the towel, he noticed just how fluffy it was.

It was now that Vlad finally had gotten a good look at the feline. The runt turned out to be a male. He had black fur mostly, white areas on his stomach and patterned on his head, along with a bit more white fur on the edge of his tail. But the thing that really stood out were the eyes. One of them was a brilliant blue, while the other was a bright green that seemed to almost glow when it caught the light a certain way.

Vlad frowned, well he certainly wasn't 'Maddie Material' as he liked to call it. Vlad didn't just own one cat, he owned several. All of them had the same attributes, and they were all named Maddie of course. Vlad could think of no better name.

The qualifications for a cat to be considered for a Maddie has many things that attribute to it. One of them is for it to be white haired. Vlad frowned at the black hair that was on most of the kitten's body. The next is to be pure bred. Vlad wrinkled his nose at the obvious domestic cat, not belonging to any one breed.

The cat slowly walked over to Vlad, looking at him with interest instead of fear this time. Vlad cautiously patted his head. He was very soft like most kittens were. The runt was also male, that added even more to the list of non 'Maddie Material' things about this cat. Vlad sighed, the runt wasn't good enough to be owned by him. He would bring it to the pound once it had reached an age when it could leave it's mother.

Now however, this cat was temporary, and held no place in his heart. Therefore, to prove his point to himself, he refused to name the kitten. You can't name something that doesn't belong to you.

He sat on the edge of his bed, exhausted. The cat padded up to him, looking hopeful, swiping at the sheets, hoping to get onto the bed.

Vlad stiffened. "No." he pulled himself fully onto the bed, pulling the covers over himself. "You sleep there." he pointed to the floor, his voice stern. The kitten seemed to shrink back a little, intimidated.

"This is temporary, street pest." he addressed the kitten before turning off his bedside lamp, and putting his head down on his pillows. As soon as his eyes closed shut, he was unconscious, completely worn out from the day he had.

* * *

The sunshine shone through the curtains in Vlad's room, they woke the mayor as he slowly rose into a sitting position, stretching out his limbs. He was about to slide out of bed when he noticed a warm presence beside him.

Vlad turned to see a small kitten waking up, yawning and stretching out much like Vlad had. The blue-green eyed cat innocently glanced up at him and let out a small meow. Vlad leaned back a bit, frazzled.

"I thought I told you to sleep on the floor! How did you get up here any-ways…" Vlad's words became slowed when he saw the scratch marks on the curtains next to his windowsill, followed by a broken alarm clock on the floor next to the bedside table, from which that point the kitten would have had easy access to the bed.

Vlad groaned, at least he was wealthy so he could pay for that. He knew this cat was trouble. He glanced at the cat who had began to meow at him. "What now?"

The cat only stared in response. A thought crept into Vlad's head. "How long has it been since you have been fed?" he mused, picking up the cat, surprised that he wasn't scratched.

The small mammal was light, and easy to carry as he set it down on a nearby chair. He called a his secretary to provide him with a warm bottle of milk replacement so the kitten could eat on the private jet.

Vlad was relieved that he would be heading back home to Wisconsin. He was sick of the city sights, not to mention the stress that came with it all as well.

Within the next hour, Vlad had gotten dressed, and gone through his morning routine. He was then boarding the flight with a pet carrier containing the kitten. He usually kept a pet carrier with him for his Maddies, but it was useful for this circumstance too he supposed.

During the plane ride he had fed the small runt with the bottle before the kitten fell asleep in the pet carrier. Vlad spent the rest of the ride hoping the rest of his felines wouldn't react hostile towards their new temporary roommate.

It was a few hours until the plane had finally landed and Vlad had phoned his chauffeur in the area. The limousine pulled up within several minutes, the ride was mostly peaceful until some attention seeking noises came from the pet carrier.

Vlad patted the box a couple times, hoping to quiet the feline, however it only resulted in more annoying noises that demanded attention.

"Quiet, we have almost arrived." he uttered to himself more than the cat.

After what seemed like forever the limousine pulled up in front of Vlad's home and the billionaire showed himself inside. He unlocked the door as the sound of the vehicle faded into the distance. He opened the door, smiling in relief as he stepped inside.

He then was quick to greet the familiar russian white cat that was almost always waiting at the door to greet him.

"Hello Maddie." he patted her head before he followed her towards a violet painted room. There was no door, just a fancy looking trim. Vlad tried to balance the weight of the carrier as the kitten moved around inside it. Maddie walked in and placed herself on a bed beside a large piece of cat furniture, which another rather large cat was occupying. The chubby british shorthair mewled at Vlad's entry to the room.

"Good morning to you Maddie." he patted the other Maddie's head. The cat simply didn't move as it was far too comfortable to lean into the touch. Vlad turned at two more meows. Behind him were a Persian, a British Longhair, and a Ragdoll.

"Maddie, you are looking lovely today." the Ragdoll purred as he ran a hand through her fur. "As are you Maddie." The fluffy british longhair let out a meow and demanded attention that the ragdoll was getting.

The persian pawed at Vlad who in return, picked her up. "I could never forget about you Maddie." the cat as placed back on the floor as she ran towards an interesting looking toy.

Vlad smiled at his room full of cats. He had taken quite a liking to them after just adopting one. He also couldn't imagine a name better than Maddie. It was perfect for a beautiful female white feline.

At the thought, Vlad placed the carrier down. He kneeled down to it as he opened it. The small black and white domestic cat waddled out. Suddenly, all the white cat's blue and green eyes were fixed on him.

"Don't worry my dears, this mutt of a cat won't be staying for long." Vlad announced,"No need to worry about him tainting our nice little space here…"

Vlad paused as the russian white approached the kitten, who looked nervous at Maddie's approach. The much bigger cat sniffed the runt once before meowing, glancing towards Vlad. The adult then grabbed the kitten by the scruff of his neck, and brought him over to a bed in the corner, this one she knew was made for her. She laid down, setting him down next to her as she began to groom him.

Vlad was extremely surprised. He wanted to shout at Maddie for even going near the runt let alone bathing him. This was only temporary.

He opened his mouth as the Persian inspected the kitten as well, grabbing a toy and offering it to him, followed by the ragdoll. Vlad couldn't believe this. All of his cat's were perfectly fine with the runt.

"Like I said! Don't worry… he will not be here for long." Vlad turned to leave the room as the cats began to teach the kitten a thing or two.

"Temporary." Vlad muttered.

* * *

One week later, the kitten had begun to get fussy.

"Just eat you damn runt!" Vlad groaned in frustration as the kitten was struggling to suckle. Vlad remembered seeing the runt attempting to eat from his russain white haired's cat bowl. He wondered if he should try to feed him wet food.

Vlad grabbed a spare shallow bowl out of the cabinet, pouring a can of expensive wet food in there before placing it in front of the kitten.

His eyes followed the kitten as he scurried towards it. Then hesitating when it came to taking a bite. The black and white feline's face slowly reached towards the food before taking a small bite. Vlad watched in surprise as the kitten suddenly began scarfing it down at warp speed.

"Alright then... " Vlad swallowed,"Now I don't have to hold you anymore that you can finally do something for yourself! Much less of a burden to me." The billionaire walked out of the kitchen at a faster than average speed as the kitten bounced after him, having finished his meal rather quickly. Vlad sat down in his office chair, happy to not have to look at the small feline when he was met with a purring fuzzball curling up in his lap, right in front of his book.

"Why do you shove yourself into everything I do?" Vlad sighed, frustrated he grabbed the kitten and shut him in the cat room, hoping that one of the Maddies could distract him. What Vlad didn't know is that the Maddie's are always willing to help out the young kit. The intelligent ragdoll had opened the door and set the small feline free once more.

Vlad sighed as he was interrupted once more, he glanced at the small runt who gave him a look as if to say ,'Love me father!'

Vlad frowned and turned back to his book… the runt was far too distracting for his own good. The kitten would need to go as soon as possible.

The kitten found it's way under one of Vlad's hands, purring as Vlad absentmindedly scritched his neck…

Vlad just didn't know when as soon as possible was.

* * *

Days passed and the kitten grew bigger each one, and with it's size, grew its eagerness to gain Vlad's affection.

Vlad swore that he was plotting with the other cats…

One of the Maddies would jump on his lap, and another one would curl up by his side, and he would pet them as they came and went. And before he knew it, only one cat was left... One unusually small one…

He looked down in surprise to see the runt yawning in his lap, almost asleep as he purred. Vlad pet him here and there as he watched the news. The kitten was soft...

More occurrences like this happened, happening more often as time went on.

Vlad would wake up with a kitten snuggling his face as sunlight peeked through the curtains.

Vlad would find himself annoyed when the kitten found itself tumbling into the bath water.

Vlad would frown at the kitten climbing up the back of his chair, before he swiped at the ribbon holding his hair in a ponytail.

Vlad would smirk as the cat lost his balance and fell before shaking it off, following Vlad loyally as a dog.

Vlad would also find himself chuckling as the kitten would knaw on random pieces of furniture.

Before the billionaire realized it, the kitten was half grown, and growing quickly, far past the age he would need to be to leave his mother…

Yet Vlad still had not even began to look for a shelter. He hand also grown accustomed to having the cat next to him on the couch as he scritched the kitten's neck.

Soon however… one night.

He found himself unable to sleep without the familiar presence of the kitten. Vlad even had the audacity to get up and search for him. He looked around, yet could not find him. Vlad decided to call his name when he realized.

He had not named the kitten.

Instead Vlad settled with making kissing noises and ringing some bells in order to find the feline.

Where Vlad found the kitten, filled him with great concern.

The poor thing had somehow made it's way outside a window and into the night, it was pouring so he was soaked. Vlad was getting a strong feeling of deja vu.

He snatched up the mewling kitty and rushed him inside, quickly bringing him into the bathroom and running a bath for the cat.

He repeated the familiar steps as he washed, rinsed, and dried the kitty before holding him close.

"I missed you runt." he admitted as the kitten let out a soft purr.

It was then that Vlad realized, how much he really spoke to his cats… they were his only living option really, other than Skulker who technically wasn't alive, and was not that pleasurable to speak to anyways.

Vlad took the cat to the bedroom and set him down on the soft blanket which the kitten definitely appreciated.

"If I need to find you again, I have to be able to call your name." Vlad stated,"So therefore, I will accept your permanent residence here with me." Vlad scratched the kitten's fluffy head. "Now, you certainly cannot be Maddie, you just simply do not fit the qualifications." He paused,"Yet you do have some qualities of another one close to her I know, and some qualities I hope to see as well."

The kitten mewled as he curled up next to his owner.

"Goodnight Daniel."

* * *

A few months had passed, the kitten had gotten a collar and tags with his name written in gold. He was easily recognizable as the favorite cat. He always slept with Vlad and got most of the head scritches, to some of the Maddie's dismay, however Vlad didn't love them any less.

The kitten had a few more months of growing to do, but was shaping up to be well sized for a runt.

Vlad was very happy with how the kitten was developing.

However, Vlad's somewhat peaceful life tends to be interrupted from time to time.

"PLASMIUS!? WHERE ARE YOU!? It has been months since I have heard from you, or one of your evil plots! Whatever happened to trying to seduce my mom and kill my dad!? You are up to something I know it!"

However, the only response Danny got was a meow from below.

Danny landed on the ground in confusion, gazing at the cat with different colored eyes.

"What the heck are you? Go on kitty, find the fruitloop!"

"Daniel get away from him!" Vlad's voice shouted as he ran into the room.

"Relax Plasmius, I'm not gonna hurt your precious cat."

"I wasn't talking to _you,_ I was talking to my favorite cat."

Danny facepalmed as he sighed,"W-what the f-... okay. Just like… at least it isn't named after my mom."

"Oh there are several of Maddies around here."

"What the FUUUUCK fruitloop!?" Danny swallowed,"I'm going home now."

"I love you Daniel."

"That's creepy Vlad."

 **"I wasn't talking to you brat!"**


End file.
